Fred Gelli on designing “the most complex visual identity in the world” for Rio 2016

This summer, athletes from around the world will descend on Rio for the 2016 Olympic and Paralympic games. The festival of sport has become a behemoth of an institution that is sold as a catalyst for regeneration, a celebration of culture and societal values, a metaphor for global brotherhood as well a series of competitions to determine who run fast or throw things furthest. The five ringed symbol of the Olympics was designed in 1912 by Pierre de Coubertin and remains a constant. Alongside this, every host city commissions a design that embodies the spirit of the games and the culture of the nation.

To design the Olympic brand involves following in the footsteps of the likes of Lance Wyman (Mexico 68), Masaru Katsumi and Yusaku Kamekura (Tokyo 64) and Wolff Olins (London 2012). In September 2009, selected from over 1000 interested designers, Rio employed Tatil, founded by Fred Gelli, to design its logo. “I love Munich [by Otl Aicher 1962] – it’s beautiful and simple. The whole identity,” says Fred. “I liked London too. No one else liked it. They did the opposite to what we have done – they simply did what they wanted to do and paid a price for it.”

Fred describes the Olympic Logo as “The most complex visual identity in the world.” He identified a number of factors that the logo had to achieve – it had to reflect local culture, be universally understood, be dynamic, innovative, make people happy, have a sense of the Carioca way of life and remain fresh for a long period of time. “The target audience was the entire world,” said Fred on stage at Design Indaba in Cape Town. “It will be seen on a mobile screen in Manhattan and on a piece of paper in a remote town in Brazil. It was a huge challenge. You try to use the values that underpin the Olympics, like union and togetherness, something bigger than sport, to create something that will inspire people.”

Tatil produced a logo in green, yellow and blue reflecting the Brazillian flag and the landscape of the country. The company also set themselves the challenge of creating something new – to bring the logo to life in a different way. “The first thing we did was to look for an archetype that can present our particular way of life. So we chose the humans linking hands, embracing as it was easily understandable,” says Fred. “The first time I met [IOC president] Jaques Rogge he said ‘Fred your Logo is amazing. I have travelled around the world and Rio and Vrazil is the only place I am received with hugs.’ I think that this is the most important thing, to create something simple that everyone could understand, even if the process of creating the logo was difficult.”

Fred and his team have created two logos, one for the Olympics and one for the Paralympics. They have different concepts but both break new ground for the Olympic logo by virtue of being a tridimensional emblem. “One of the trickiest things was to ensure the relationship between the 2D logo and the 3D logo. It has to be the same, not two different things,” explains Fred. The form of the logo is inspired by the natural shapes of the landscape around Rio, abstracted to create fluid curves that, if positioned carefully, follow the contours of the landscape. “People are now seeing things in the logo that we did not consider,” says Fred.

If you encounter one of the speakers before they take to the stage at Design Indaba the sense of fear is palpable. Whether they are 18 or 80, at the outset of their career or a seasoned pro, there is a feeling of anticipation and adrenaline that radiates from each individual. There are many factors that cause this: the size of the audience (2500 in the auditorium, and the hundreds viewing the simulcasts around the country); the scope and stature of the people who have ventured into the spotlight at the event before them; and the fact that they have been challenged to produce a presentation that goes beyond simply presenting work they have completed – to do something original on stage.

“Don’t combine Rock and Roll with professionalism” was a friendly word of warning from Stockholm based creative agency Snask. Founders Erik Kockum and Fredrik Öst closed the second day of Design Indaba arriving on stage in a car and bringing the band Väg (which translates as ‘road’ in English) on with them. After asking the audience to don pink masks and ignoring their own advice, they combined rock and roll and professionalism with shambolic style.

NB Studio founders Nick Finney and Alan Dye have turned their hand to playwriting. Their production Turning the Tables was premiered in Cape Town as part of Design Indaba. The story revolves around a pitch by a self-nominated “creative genius” called Peter – who offers gems of wisdom such as “The client needs bullshit, subtlety is wasted on the client.” – and Jo, who he is presenting to. “Peter is a bit of everybody, he has hopes and fears and dreams,” says Nick. “He has anxieties, charm, he’s creative… he’s got an ego,” adds Alan. “He’s Not Nick and I. Both the characters are an amalgamation of ideas.”

Design Indaba kicks off in Cape Town this week, and as Media Partner It’s Nice That will be reporting from the event, speaking with leading figures from the design world and keeping an eye out for new talent. Below is a round-up of the events we are particularly looking forward to this week.

Since 2014, It’s Nice That has partnered with the world’s largest design conference, Design Indaba, that brings together thousands of delegates and fantastic line-up of speakers each year in Cape Town. To kick off our 2016 partnership we interview founder Ravi Naidoo about the inspiration and ambition behind the endeavour.

Dan Wieden is at a party. It’s being held in the Presidential Suite of a hotel in Cape Town and the views from the 17th floor balcony, across the city to Table Mountain, are insane. There’s a bar in one corner and decks off to one side, but no DJ. Dan and his wife arrive and stroll through the throng to a raised decking area. The party is aware that he’s here but everyone pretends not to have noticed. Be cool. The 69-year-old is the founder of the world’s largest independent advertising agency, Wieden + Kennedy, that he set up in Portland, Oregon in 1982. In the early days it was a small operation; he and David Kennedy put in $500 and rented a basement room that didn’t even have a phone. “We had a payphone at the end of the hallway and we’d run down there if the damn thing rang,” he remembers, then puts on a super slick ad-land tone. “Hello Wieden + Kennedy.” He says the company’s growth baffles him. “We’re a success story that makes absolutely no sense whatsoever. We’re a cosmic joke.”